Early Childhood Education Handbook

Research Center for Child and Adolescent Development and Education

Ochanomizu U niversity

2 Guides to formulation of curriculum

What is curriculum?
We often see children play freely at kindergarten. However, it should be remembered that early
childhood education is not the same as leaving children to play as they like in the field or in the
park. There are clear frameworks when early childhood education is provided at a public
educational facility, like a kindergarten. Among those frameworks, we call the total experience that
children gain throughout a kindergarten life and its route Curriculum. The curriculum is a holistic
educational framework at kindergarten.
The word curriculum is derived from a Latin word currere, which refers to an ancient horse
race or a track for horse racing. Therefore, the curriculum is a route that should be followed from
the start to the goal, in early childhood education.

1 Curriculum in practice
(1) Law: The National Curriculum Standards for Kindergartens

In Japan, the curriculum is based on the law on education at kindergarten, the National
Curriculum Standards for Kindergartens. It provides the following guidance on the formulation of
curriculum.
Kindergartens should develop specific aims and curriculum content taking into consideration to the
period of education, the experiences of children and the process of child development, in order for
the aims to be comprehensively achieved throughout a child's time at kindergarten.
Kindergartens should take measures based on long-term perspectives, taking into consideration the
special characteristics of early childhood development, so that children can experience a fruitful
life.

The curriculum shows the educational aims and activities that a kindergarten sets, so that teachers
will prepare for children with the intention of achieving particular aims. It covers time and space,
starting from the time of entry to completion of kindergarten, and the space both inside and outside
of kindergarten.
The curriculum is formulated by looking at three components: educational aims, guidelines for the
formulation of the curriculum, and yearly instruction plans. The following is a curriculum of one
Japanese kindergarten in the Tohoku (northeast) region of Japan.

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 Early Childhood Education Handbook
Research Center for Child and Adolescent Development and Education
Ochanomizu U niversity

(2) Educational aims

Educational aims reflect how teachers hope children will develop at kindergarten. Aims vary from
one kindergarten to another. For instance, one Japanese kindergarten' aims for:

Children who broaden their minds, have dreams, and are lively
Children who think and act (Develop sociability)
Children who are healthy and active (Develop motor function)
Children who have sensibility (Cultivate feelings)

Although there are some differences among kindergartens, many of them set educational aims
focusing on distinct aspects of child development, such as health, sociability, feelings, cognition,
and expression etc., as this kindergarten does. But although there are distinct aspects, early
childhood education is comprehensive and should be promoted as a whole.
As shown below, this kindergartenmakes its educational aims more specific, depending on the
age of children, and calls them developmental goals.

Developmental goals
Children who broaden their minds, have dreams, and are lively

Three-Year-Old
Know the enjoyment of playing with children who get along well

Children who think and act

Four-Year-Old
(Develop sociability)
Express and share their feelings and play with other children

Five-Year-Old
Share a goal among friends in the same group/class, and play actively

Three-Year-Old
Feel comfortable at kindergarten and play cheerfully

Children who are healthy and Four-Year-Old

active Behave cheerfully and freely and play enthusiastically
(Develop motor function)
Five-Year-Old
Take plenty of exercise, play enthusiastically and feel a sense of
fulfillment

Three-Year-Old
Takes an interest in a variety of things in life and enjoys them

Four-Year-Old

Children who have sensibility Enjoy expressing how they have felt or what they have thought in

(Cultivate feelings) everyday life in their own way

Five-Year-Old
Enjoy communication with friends by expressing how they have felt or
what they have thought in the various experiences

By making the aims more specific as shown above, the aims become clearer and teachers
can recognize that those aims can be achieved gradually as a child gets older.

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 Early Childhood Education Handbook
Research Center for Child and Adolescent Development and Education
Ochanomizu U niversity

(3) Guidelines for the formulation of the curriculum

This kindergarten uses the following guidelines for the formulation of the curriculum.
Aim to

Provide an appropriate environment and support for the children, centered on play, to develop
their ability to live flexibly.
Improve the instruction system so that it makes the best of teachers' skills and creates a
cooperative atmosphere
Promote cooperation with parents and the community, through educational counseling and help
with child care.

Guidelines should be flexible. Kindergartens should develop them continuously through

evaluation by all staff, and in the light of the conditions and needs of children, parents and the
community. Guidelines for Educational counseling or Promotion of Support of Child Rearing,
for example, should meet the needs of the community. Therefore, they will vary depending on the
circumstances surrounding each kindergarten. Put simply, it is important to understand and address
the needs of the children who come to kindergarten, and the needs of their families and community.

(4) Yearly instruction plan

The curriculum covers the whole time that children attend a kindergarten, from entry to completion.
Therefore, teachers formulate the curriculum depending on the period of education, which is usually 2
or 3 years in Japan. The National Curriculum Standards for Kindergartens' states that the minimum
number of weeks per year of kindergarten education should be 39, and attendance is four hours each
day.
Teachers divide the period of education into several and think about specific objectives and activities,
to achieve the educational aims explained above. For instance, this kindergarten formulates a yearly
instruction plan for each grade (3, 4 and 5 years old). Teachers make more specific plans: daily,
weekly, monthly and periodical plans based on the yearly instruction plan.
Usually, a year is divided into 4-5 terms based on the consideration of childrens life and
development throughout a year depending on their age. Each term has its specific objectives and
activities. For instance, the objectives during the first term of the first year of kindergarten (when a
child is 3 years old in Japan) are feel comfortable with teachers and life at kindergarten and come to
kindergarten cheerfully, and find favorite play and play tools and enjoy playing at kindergarten. The
content of early childhood education during this period is, find favorite play and play tools and play
cheerfully, come to kindergarten joyfully and play in various ways, know how a day is organized at
kindergarten and understand simple rules, and feel attached to teachers. Teachers set those objectives
because it is quite natural for three-year-old children who have just entered kindergarten to feel uneasy
about spending a day at kindergarten without parents. If children can get acclimatized to the new life

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 Early Childhood Education Handbook
Research Center for Child and Adolescent Development and Education
Ochanomizu U niversity

and spend their day comfortably at kindergarten, they can take a step forward to new objectives and
activities in the next stage. Furthermore, as they get older, objectives and activities are in accordance
with several aspects of development - such as establishment of relationships with friends and teachers, a
relationship with the environment, and self-expression - become higher and richer.
At this kindergarten, the activities in the yearly plan during winter, from December to March, are be
interested in snow, ice and frost and enjoy play peculiar to winter (four-years old) and learn to put
and take off jacket and gloves (four-years-old). This reflects the fact that this kindergarten is located in
the northeast region of Japan, where it is cold and it snows a lot. As can be seen in the case of this
kindergarten, it is important to make the most of the natural environment and climate in the region
where the kindergarten is located, when deciding the activities.

(5)Annual events

Annual events are also included in the curriculum. The following table shows events generally
conducted at Japanese kindergartens. Basically, the activities that children experience through
various events are based on, and extended from, daily life at kindergarten. Events are valuable as
they provide opportunities for children to have experiences that they do not usually have in
everyday life at kindergarten. For instance, Japan has events that mark the stages of life at
kindergarten or of a child's development, such as an entrance/leaving ceremony and birthday
parties. We also hold events to learn and appreciate the Japanese seasons and traditional culture,
such as Tanabata (Star Festival), Jyugoya (the night with a full moon), Setsubun (Bean Throwing
Ceremony) and Hina-Matsuri (Doll Festival). In addition, we try to enrich the experiences of
children by going on school trips or holding a sport festival. In addition, we plan events taking into
consideration the regional and educational characteristics where the kindergarten is located.
In the formulation of the curriculum, it is important to consider when and how we conduct these
events. It is important to make a plan taking into consideration the seasons or the level of child
development so that children can feel the enjoyment of participation and a sense of fulfillment. In
addition, events provide good opportunities to show how children have developed, and can
encourage cooperation with parents or people in the community.

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 Early Childhood Education Handbook
Research Center for Child and Adolescent Development and Education
Ochanomizu U niversity

Annual plan of events

April May June

Opening Ceremony Childrens Day Party Planting vegetables (sweet

Entrance Ceremony School Trip with Parents potatoes and soybeans in the

Parents Day Parents Open Day pod)

Annual Health Examination School Trip

Opening of Swimming Pool

July August September

Star Festival Early Childhood Care During Opening Ceremony

Day to enjoy the cool of evening Summer Vacation Emergency Drill

Parents Day Harvest (soybeans in the pod)

Closing Ceremony Closing of Swimming Pool

October November December

Sports Festival Parents Open Day Childrens show

Digging Sweet Potatoes School Trip Rice-cake Making Party

Parents Day Closing Ceremony

January February March

Opening Ceremony Bean Throwing Ceremony Doll Festival

Kite-flying School Trip Farewell Party

Visiting Elementary School Leaving Ceremony

Parents Day Closing Ceremony

(6)Improvement of the curriculum

The curriculum should be flexible. Kindergartens should improve the curriculum after
conducting appropriate reviews and evaluations of the educational processes, so that the curriculum
reflects the children's conditions, encourages their development and contributes to the fulfillment of
their life.

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